It took quite a bit of effort to pull the long sword from Green Face Eleven's neck. Luo Qikang used his toe to roll the corpse onto its side, then took out a handkerchief and bent down. Carefully, he wrapped the blood-soaked hilt in it, pinched it between two fingers, and slowly drew the sword out.
A hissing sound rang through the empty main hall, sending a chill through everyone who heard it. Even the Green Faces, who were used to seeing corpses, showed traces of fear.
Luo Qikang held his long sword at arm's length, his brow furrowed, as though he didn't know what to do with it.
Five or six Central Plains martial artists watched the swordsman from the Luo family with reverence, then suddenly surged forward, pulling out handkerchiefs and the like. One even tore off a piece of his robe. They jostled to wipe down Luo Qikang's sword.
Luo Qikang handed the sword to the first person who touched it, swept a cold gaze over Unrivaled King and Dragon King, then returned to his place and said nothing more.
Sun Chengqi seemed to have realized for the first time that the dark-complexioned swordsman was no ordinary man. As Luo Qikang passed, Sun Chengqi nodded to him in a friendly gesture, but got no response.
By comparison, getting Unrivaled King's youngest son out of Golden Peng Fortress had taken far more effort.
At first, everyone's attention had been on the Central Plains people. Shangguan Cheng, too, couldn't take his eyes off the unremarkable-looking challenger with his godlike swordsmanship. For the first time, he found himself doubting his father's skill.
Luo Qikang had completed his task. At Dragon King's signal, Shangguan Fei and Shangguan Hong approached the steps in trepidation. They stopped just a few paces from their